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by Gordon Ellis -
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AIChE has announced the selection of Michael (Mike) J. Graff, Chairman and CEO of American Air Liquide Inc., and Executive Vice President of Air Liquide Group, as Vice Chair of the AIChE Foundation Board of Trustees. Graff joins a team led by Jennifer Sinclair Curtis, Distinguished Professor of Chemical Engineering at the Univ. of California, Davis. Graff began his term as Vice Chair in January 2024 and will succeed Curtis as Foundation Chair in 2026.
As the philanthropic arm of AIChE, the AIChE Foundation partners with a community of global donors to raise funds that support the “Doing a World of Good” campaign, which supports the chemical engineering profession’s ability to address some of society’s foremost challenges, including the energy transition, safety in industrial practice, and the development and retention of a highly talented and more-equitable workforce.
“As Vice Chair of the AIChE Foundation Board of Trustees,” said Graff, “I look forward to continuing my engagement with the Foundation and aligning my personal passion for sustainability, safety, and workforce development, so that together we can ensure that the chemical engineering profession is ready and able to do good for the world — today, and into the future.”
Graff’s background
Graff has more than 30 years of executive leadership experience in the energy, chemicals, polymers, and industrial gas industries across the Americas, Asia, and Europe. He began his career with Amoco and BP, plc., and he went on to serve as president or CEO of several global chemical and polymer businesses prior to joining Air Liquide in 2007.
A chemical engineering alumnus of the Illinois Institute of Technology and Purdue Univ., where he earned his BS and MS degrees, respectively, Graff also studied business at the Univ. of Chicago and completed executive management programs at the Wharton School of the Univ. of Pennsylvania. His service to industry includes roles as an officer and Chair of the Executive Committee of the American Chemistry Council, as well as being a principal of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s American Energy Innovation Council, and a member of the National Petroleum Council. He also serves on the boards of AIChE’s Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) and the Westlake Chemical Corp.
Among numerous honors, in 2023 Graff received the AIChE Government and Industry Leaders (AGILE) Award, and presented the AGILE keynote address at the 2023 AIChE Spring Meeting and Global Congress on Process Safety.
For more information about the AIChE Foundation and its projects, visit www.aiche.org/giving.